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Exploring AI's impact on the workforce

Date: Friday 18 October 2024 | Time: 12:00 - 17:00
Location: The Catalyst, 3 Science Square, Newcastle Helix, Newcastle, NE4 5TG | Get directions

Join us for the launch day of NCL in Action 2024

Help us kickstart the action with our 'Virtual Insanity or Smart Reality?' launch day event in Newcastle on Friday 18 October.

We will be exploring AI's impact on today's workforce, looking at ways in which we can use AI to help with our productivity at work, and aiming to answer the ultimate question on all of our minds...'Will AI take my job?'

Take a look at the agenda and sign up below.

Please select either Workshop 1 OR Workshop 2 when placing your order as these will be running simultaneously.

Event schedule

12:00 - 13:00: Lunch, networking and NCL Living Library 

Kickstart the day by exchanging your current thinking about artificial intelligence with one another over lunch.

You'll also have the opportunity to sign up to our NCL Living Library. The aim is to give you access to the Newcastle academics and alumni experts behind the books, the research and the articles about artificial intelligence and allow you to talk to them directly about their work. 


13:00 - 13:30: Welcome and keynote introduction by Rob McCargow, Technology Impact Leader, PwC UK

Rob McCargow leads market activation for PwC’s cloud and digital transformation business in the UK. He is a leading voice in AI and an evangelist for the responsible and ethical adoption of technology and its impact on society.  

He’s a Visiting Fellow at Bayes Business School, and a founding board member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on AI. HR Magazine ranks him as an ‘HR Most Influential Thinker’, Onalytica cites him as a ‘Who’s Who in AI’, and he was voted ‘Tech Community Leader of the Year’ at CogX. He won Editor’s Choice at the TechWomen100 Awards and is a Male Agent of Change finalist at the Everywoman in Tech Awards in recognition of his championing of the women in tech agenda. 


13:30 - 13:45: Break


13:45 - 14:45: Workshops

Workshop 1 - Leadership in the age of AI

(Select either Workshop 1 OR Workshop 2)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionising industries across the globe, but for many organisations, the journey toward adopting AI is fraught with uncertainty and complexity. In this session, you'll learn what it means to be "AI-ready" and how to prepare your organisation to leverage AI effectively.

Workshop 2 - Supercharge your productivity with AI tools

(Select either Workshop 1 or Workshop 2)

Explore how AI can revolutionise personal productivity by streamlining tasks, automating workflows, and enhancing content creation. The session has been designed to empower Newcastle University alumni, students and staff with the knowledge, tools, and techniques to enhance their productivity using AI tools and work smarter, not harder.


14:45 - 15:00: Refreshment break


15:00 - 16:00: "AI will eliminate all jobs" (Elon Musk): The Great Debate

With the rapid expansion of AI in the workplace, the question on all our minds is 'Will AI take my job?'. From the automation of tasks to the support of difficult decision-making, there is certainly a place for AI in today's workplace and in the future. But what are the real limitations and possibilities?

Join our panel of experts for an exciting debate on whether AI will ever fully replace humans in the workplace.


16:00 - 17:00: Networking reception